Samsung Q80T QLED Review

The Q80T sat below the Q90T in Samsung's 2020 lineup and became one of its best sellers, bringing full array local dimming, quantum dot color and the brand's best gaming features to a price well under the flagships. The dimming runs to about 50 zones, fewer than the 2019 Q80R, but they are carefully tuned.

Reviewers were largely positive. The picture is bright and punchy, reaching close to 900 nits in HDR in some tests, with rich color and strong contrast from the VA panel, and reflection handling suits a bright living room. The caveats are about subtlety: shading in dark scenes could be finer, Full HD sources can look noisy, colors need taming out of the box, and while the Ultra Viewing Angle layer on 55 inch and larger sizes widens the sweet spot, native contrast is lower than most VA panels.

HDMI 4 handles 4K at 120Hz, joined by VRR, ALLM and FreeSync, and input lag is low in game mode, though one test found it merely average. Object Tracking Sound, with extra drivers at the top of the frame, gives a wider, more convincing soundstage than most TVs. The sore point is no Dolby Vision, only HDR10 plus.

The 65 inch launched at 1,799.99 dollars and was soon discounted, which is where it made most sense. For a bright room of films, sport and consoles it was a sensible, well rounded buy, but with fewer dimming zones than the 2019 Q80R it was a very good TV rather than a standout.